Among the many Old Girls who visited BSS after graduating last year, Kelsey SPITZ '06 and Claire SEABORN ’06 dropped by to have a chat about life as an Alpha Girl starting university after years at BSS. Was leaving the nest tough? Did they feel well pre­pared? Ms. Spitz is in her first year of the foreign service program at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.; Ms. Seaborn is in her first year at the University of British Columbia studying liberal arts. Both are models of what author Dan Kindlon would describe as Al­pha Girls - in fact, Ms. Seaborn was interviewed for his book Alpha Girls, when she was a Grade 11 student at BSS.

Claire Seaborn '06 and Kelsey Spitz '06 visit BSS to share their university experience.

SG: So, what does it feel like to be back at BSS after what must have been a whirlwind adventure over the past several months?

CS: I felt nervous walking into the building today. I didn’t realize it was going to have such a great impact on me. It felt so overwhelm­ing. So much change has happened all at once and I guess it hit home when I came here. Being home makes everything I’ve been through over the past few months seem unreal. But I think it’s really impor­tant to go away at this time in my life and learn to stand on my own two feet. You can’t get that experience staying at home and it’s a real change. I think it will be a lot harder eventually for people who do stay home during these years.

KS: I feel like my life at Georgetown is more real to me now than being back home, even though, of course, I love being here.

SG: Do you feel you were well prepared for the changes you’ve experienced since leaving BSS?

CS: I loved the nurturing and the support I received here. It was de.nitely what I needed at the time. But I think BSS could have been more realistic about how big the change was going to be for new undergraduates. They said I would breeze through first year. Well, that hasn’t been the case. It’s a huge adjustment. They should tell students to brace themselves. Every university is different and they are all much different from being here in high school.

SG: Kelsey, you took five AP courses in one year at BSS. How did that help you at university?

KS: That took care of the English requirement for my program. In terms of learning, it really helped. I can write university-level essays and even though some of the other APs I took didn’t qualify at Georgetown, the level of academics really helps me handle univer­sity-level courses.

SG: What did you do after you graduated from BSS to get ready for the new life ahead?

CS: After I graduated from BSS I went to work at CTV for a week as part of a prize for the Toronto School Film Festival. My true passion is to become a filmmaker so I was really excited to be able to shadow a producer for a whole week and learn what he did. Then I got to produce my own 30-second program promotion spot that aired between Oprah and Dr. Phil. I got to see everything first hand, then I wrote, shot and edited my own spot. It was really fun. After that I went to camp for two months, then off to UBC.

KS: I was a counsellor for a day camp which I loved doing, and I was a youth delegate at the World AIDS Conference. As part of my volunteer work for Foster Parents Plan, they sent me as a delegate to the pre-conference which was all focused on youth. The idea was to create solidarity and a strong youth voice at the actual conference. It was a real eye opener for me, both heartening and disheartening. There is still so much misunderstanding about youth involvement in this issue. The highest rate of new infection is in people 15–24 and they’re not being included in the solution. I met kids from all around the world, all of us with the same goal—to push the youth voice.

SG: So, I see you both basically relaxed and chilled Alpha Girl-style. Tell me about the .rst few weeks at school when everything was new and you were trying to .nd your way, just perhaps to offer some insights for this year’s grads.

CS: I really, really liked UBC. I made tons of new friends. But the beginning was tough to get adjusted to a new school. I joined a lot of things to get my foot in the door as quickly as possible. I was a bit disappointed by the level of organization and quality of the clubs—they were inferior to the experience I had with the clubs at BSS! I found some exciting things happening in the Environmental Club, like a stuff swap that emphasizes recycling items rather than buying new all the time. I was also hit really hard by school work. Didn’t do so well on my midterms, but I worked really hard and did very well on my finals. Then of course, I got to go to Whistler every weekend. I can’t say I was the Alpha Girl I was at BSS, but I will be again when I get used to the school.

KS: Georgetown had a pre-orientation for international students which is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I met kids from all over the world and so many have become good friends. I’m get­ting to know people and this incredible international community, and they teach me so much about their cultures and lives.

I also joined a play in my first week called “Sordid Lives” in which I play an ex-convict country singer. My character, Bitsy, was played by Olivia Newton-John in the movie version. I thought that was cool. Midterms really hit and the school work is tough. But exploring Washington and getting to hear the amazing speakers who regularly visit the campus were really exciting.

SG: So, overall positive experiences if, at times, a bit overwhelming. What was the toughest challenge?

CS: For me it was Mandarin. I’m taking it for the first time and I can’t believe how hard it is. The majority of my classmates are Japanese or Korean so they’re already familiar with the character system. It’s really hard to keep up. I failed my midterm even though I studied for hours and hours. So I went to the professor and she gave me extra help. I started seeing her regularly and ended up with a 70 per cent on the course. I’ve decided to continue with it.

SG: And what does the future hold for you?

KS: I don’t want to live in North America. My heart is set on Africa. I want to work in the field and learn about the culture. That’s one reason I’m learning Swahili—the language is built into the cul­ture. Eventually, maybe I’ll work with the UN as a field and diplo­matic liaison. I went through a phase when I didn’t want to have kids, and now I just don’t know about that.

CS: For me, I want marriage and children, and to be a filmmaker. My dream job is to become an activist filmmaker, doing documen­tary films, and films for business. I want to blend the commercial side, the real moneymaker with the more meaningful, artistic side. I think both are equally important.

Interestingly, when asked what they thought of the recent Liberal leadership convention and the prospect of a new prime min­ister, neither had really followed the Canadian political scene. So focused were they on the outer world that the things going on at home held little interest. These two Alpha Girls will no doubt put their gifts to good use in the service of the world community that needs their skills and sensibilities the most.

Posted January 09, 2008 at 12:14pm

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